Shinji Matou at Your Service

The events that followed were natural and expected. Shirou, feeling a sense of fate and gratitude for the person who had saved a life, decided to collect the soul that hadn't yet dissipated to give him a chance—a gesture of good karma.

After some investigation, Shirou discovered that this soul had an astonishing adaptability to time-space travel. Remembering how this guy always mentioned anime, and considering Shirou's arrangements in the Type-Moon universe and his friendship with the professional time traveler Zelretch, he sent him over, which led to the current story.

Shinji wasn't surprised by this explanation. Shirou had a close relationship with Zelretch, and the many details in his words showed that he indeed knew Shinji's past life. However, Shinji still had some doubts in his heart.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead. At this point, there's nothing to hide."

"Why did you make me transmigrate instead of reviving me directly? Isn't the latter harder than the former?"

"Well, in terms of difficulty, reviving the dead and transmigration is about the same. But for an individual, the difference is significant. For example, for me, making a hundred-time travels is easier than reviving you, especially since you died without a body and your soul had no anchor."

"From what you're saying, it seems like it could be done if you wanted to?"

"It can be done, but the price is too high and not worth it. To put it this way, the fundamental rules between universes are different, and the concept of Earth is much more complicated than you think. On the Earth you live on, which is also the Earth I come from, extraordinary powers are greatly restricted. On this Earth we're standing on, I could save you before you got hit, or even if you died, I could change the events to make it so you didn't die. Do you understand?"

Shinji thought carefully for a few minutes and nodded: "I understand most of it, but... changing events, can you do such an exaggerated thing?"

"Only in a few universes. I'm specialized in combat, not in this field, so I can do it with the help of special equipment."

"Special equipment?"

"That's right. You've probably heard of it—Mooncell, a computer and observation device left on the moon by a civilization far more advanced than Earth's. The space we're in and my ability to replace Amakusa Shirou Tokisada are all thanks to Mooncell."

With this explanation, Shinji understood.

Mooncell, officially known as Mooncell Automaton, is an energy storage entity discovered inside the moon, a photon crystal with a diameter of three thousand kilometers. Created by an intelligent life form different from humans, it is the oldest mysterious object in the solar system.

A supercomputer the size of the moon, also known as the Eye of God or Holy Grail, it decodes everything on Earth. It is humanity's database, recording all past events, and predicting all futures, and its computational scale matches that of a solar system's omnipotent computer.

It is one of the two most powerful known entities in the Type-Moon universe. The Type-Moon branch series "Fate/Extra" revolves around it. In a sense, it is the true omnipotent wishing machine, the "Moon Holy Grail." With its power, changing events and creating different spaces are easy.

"Mooncell? But if I remember correctly, the magic in the Moon Holy Grail's world line should have long declined. Here…"

"I mentioned Mooncell because it's easier to understand that way. Mooncell might be unique to the Moon Holy Grail line, but that computer exists in all world lines of the Type-Moon universe; it just might not always be named that."

"I see. So what authority do you have? The sovereign Kingship?"

Mooncell contains a massive fictional world, and the Kingship is the supreme authority within this world, akin to the omniscient and omnipotent, One God.

"Neither."

Shirou smiled slightly and shook his head: "I have user privileges. The sovereign Kingship is an authority and function automatically generated within Mooncell—ugh, let's stick with Mooncell. User privileges mean external operation, like how we normally use computers. In terms of hierarchy, it's lower than Kingship since I don't know or can't change the program code."

"That's still impressive. So, what was the real reason you went to such lengths to orchestrate this Holy Grail War? It can't just be to mess with me, right?"

The more Shinji interacted with Shirou, the more he sensed Shirou's unfathomable depth, and the more he doubted and was curious about his intentions.

"I'm not that bored. There are several reasons, starting with those related to you. Since I sent you here, I naturally don't want you to live poorly. The old man sent you to the Matou family after careful consideration. The Matou family is a family that straddles between the mystical and the mundane. If you didn't want to be involved with the mystical, you could live a successful ordinary life. You know how Matou Shinji was in the original world line, frequently changing girlfriends. As for that old worm, with the old man's protection, he's not worth mentioning."

"So my initial worries were completely unnecessary?"

Hearing Shirou say this, Shinji's expression stiffened, almost fainting.

"What the hell was I fighting so hard for then?"

Shirou remained unmoved: "Don't you know why yourself? To become stronger, to gain power—this is an impulse everyone has. Although you always say you have no ambition, you are quite determined, especially in the face of adversity. Retaking the entrance exam, and completing a project under immense pressure with a group of newcomers is the best proof of that. Putting you in the Matou family considered this, and it turns out that old Worm gave you a great deal of motivation. With a desire to become stronger, the rest is easy to handle."

"And what about Justeaze..."

"The old man set up the opportunity for that. The visit to the Land of Shadows and the chance to summon Queen Scáthach were also arranged. Of course, the opportunity is given to you, but whether you can seize it depends on your ability. If you seize it, you'll soar; if not, you'll live a stable life forever—we're not your babysitters, we can't guarantee you'll become a god."

"I understand."

People must help themselves before heaven helps them and others help them. If you've given up on yourself, how can you expect others to support you?

"In the end, you didn't disappoint us and even set the nearly unrealistic goal of defeating Queen Scáthach and ending her eternity..."

"Ahaha."

Shinji scratched his head sheepishly, "I got a bit carried away at the time. Besides, one must have some dreams in life, otherwise, what's the difference between living and being a salted fish?"

"That's why I've decided to give you another opportunity—this trial."